Chapter 111
I woke up before dawn. Today, starting at noon, the Crimson Crown Prince, Francec, would be parading through the streets.
Entering the reserved private training room, I checked my nervous system. I performed a series of movements, starting from the basics of combat techniques to more complex actions.
A quick glance at the display on the wall showed that my execution speed and sense of balance were close to my personal best. My condition was excellent.
I threw a punch. It was an optimized movement achieved through the synchronization of my organic body and mechanical parts.
Shifting my upper body from side to side, I continued throwing punches in succession. As the output of my prosthetic arm gradually increased, the striking bag rose higher and higher.
Pa-ang!
Eventually, the bag hit the ceiling before dropping back down. The thunderous noise reverberated off the walls.
I caught my breath and closed my eyes. My body had warmed up just enough.
Now, it was time to assume the presence of an imaginary enemy and fight. It might seem ridiculous, but the effect was substantial. By repeatedly anticipating my opponent’s movements in advance and imprinting them into my brain, I could react and act faster in actual combat, even without a virtual simulation.
‘The enemy is…’
I half-opened my eyes. A faint light seeped into my pupils.
‘…Kinuan or Hemillas?’
By the time I fully opened my eyes, the figures of both men overlapped before me. They were surprisingly vivid for a mere imagination.
‘Another hallucination.’
I blinked.
Since visiting Director Jin Gaw, my hallucinations had improved. At the very least, Hemillas no longer appeared to me as a two-legged beast covered in fur.
I wasn’t afraid of my mind deteriorating. What I feared was a decline in combat effectiveness due to brain dysfunction in battle.
‘As long as I can fight properly, seeing occasional hallucinations outside of battle is fine. I’ve come this far accepting that much.’
However, if I started experiencing hallucinations during combat or developed motor impairments, that would be a serious problem.
‘Kinuan, Hemillas… It doesn’t matter who. If anyone stands in my way, I’ll break through them.’
The same applied to them. If they ever deemed me an obstacle, they wouldn’t hesitate to take my life.
‘I can’t afford to waver in moments of decision.’
I needed to learn from Ilay’s decisiveness. Sever my emotions and act. It was something I could do, too.
Kirik!
I drew my shock pistol, Ruina, and merely mimed pulling the trigger. If I actually fired it, even the Imperial Guard’s training room walls wouldn’t hold up.
Kiiiiing!
The high-compression heavy weapon, Crucis, still gleamed with its imposing presence. Despite numerous real battles, its blade remained as polished as if it were brand new.
Whirik!
I swung the heavy Crucis. It felt like my body was being dragged along with the blade.
When using Crucis, attacks had to flow seamlessly. Even with a high-output prosthetic, resisting the kinetic energy of the heavy weapon would strain my wrist and elbow beyond their limits.
That’s what made Crucis difficult to handle. To put it metaphorically, it was like a wild horse running rampant.
I looked ahead. The imagined enemy, whether Kinuan or Hemillas, was skillfully dodging my attacks.
Wooong!
As acceleration built up, Crucis and I moved even faster. Spinning like a top, a thought suddenly came to me.
Whirik!
I turned in a full spin, swinging the blade before releasing it in a low, sweeping throw that scraped the floor. Leaving my hand, Crucis flew low like a boomerang.
The imagined enemy was struck by Crucis and faded into nothingness.
Kadeudeudeuk!
Spinning as it flew, Crucis tore through the training room wall before climbing up to the ceiling. Exposed wires and circuits crackled with electricity.
It finally stopped, lodged deep into a steel beam. I reached up and yanked Crucis free from the ceiling.
Kwajijik!
A mess of tangled components came crashing down. Taking a step back, I shrugged awkwardly.
“…The Imperial Guard’s maintenance crew should be able to handle this much.”
I left the wrecked training room.
Dawn was breaking. The sun cast its light between the haphazardly built structures. I purposely didn’t wash up, letting the early morning wind cool me as I walked.
After training, the sensation of cooling sweat under the cold air felt pleasant. It was a difficult feeling to describe—something fresh and invigorating.
‘This is a sensation that won’t last much longer.’
These emotions and feelings I was experiencing now wouldn’t be possible once I had a full-body prosthetic. Today’s memory would become an irreplaceable relic of the past.
‘This world is full of contradictions.’
I replaced my limbs with machines to become stronger. Yet, in order to remain human, I had to fight against the very machines I had embraced.
Kinuan, Hemillas, even Iskan… all of them had advised me to cherish the sensations and memories of my organic body, to experience as much as I could while I still had the chance.
Step, step.
I didn’t rush, letting my body cool down at a steady pace. Even as my eyes stung, I stared directly into the rising sun.
‘Will I, too, one day… long for the flesh and blood I’ve lost? Or will I live envying it, like the beasts in the torture chambers?’
I had no way of knowing.
For now, as long as I could become stronger, I felt like I could discard something even greater than flesh and blood.
Lost in thought, my steps carried me forward until I stopped in front of my door. Before I knew it, I was back in my room.
Chiik.
Before the door had even fully opened, I knew someone was inside. And as soon as I realized who it was, I frowned.
"What brings you here?"
Ivan Accretia was sitting on the edge of my bed. With one leg crossed over the other, he gazed at me lazily.
"You should at least say hello first. Good morning, Luka. I hear you’ve been assigned to guard Francec?"
Ivan spoke as if amused.
"I'm carrying out my duties as a member of the Imperial Guard. It’s not personal protection."
"No, I'm certain Francec will keep you right by his side."
I thought the same. There would be no reason to summon me otherwise.
"…Ah, and thank you for the warning last time. Thanks to you, I survived."
I expressed my gratitude. Had I not prepared after his warning, I would have lost at least a limb to the attack helicopter. Worse, I could have died.
"Even without my warning, you would have managed. I just wanted to put you in my debt. You're weak to those you owe."
"That’s true."
"By the way, Hemillas is quite something. I didn’t expect him to take control of the Catacomb Mine's interests. That makes it even harder to suppress him. If anyone moves against Hemillas or the military now?"
Ivan paused, waiting for my response. His eyes gleamed like those of an innocent boy.
"Since the Catacomb Mine’s rights were redirected to the Disabled Veterans' Fund, it’ll look like Hemillas is the one being oppressed."
Ivan clapped his hands together in satisfaction.
"Haha, you’re sharp. Just as expected from an Overseer. It was never a coincidence that Hemillas has been so skillfully avoiding traps all this time. He always seemed just about to get caught but never did. I never imagined he had a stash of his own. And those other old men flaunting their crests—managing the Empire isn’t easy. The moment they grow a little too clever, they all start trying to bite their master."
I felt a mix of emotions.
Hemillas wasn’t just a dutiful soldier. As one of the highest-ranking figures in the military, he was well-versed in schemes and intrigue. Now that he had revealed his hidden hand, he wouldn’t go down easily. He might even begin to strike back.
But the longer Hemillas held out, the greater the likelihood of the Custoria family being wiped out.
"His Highness…"
"Call me Ivan. If you get my title wrong one more time, I’ll get angry."
"Ivan, your thoughts seem to differ from His Majesty’s."
I spoke boldly. Ivan had hinted at something like this before.
'Luka, I am not my father. My father is my father, and I am me. The current plan is my father’s will, not mine.'
I had believed those words to be true, which is why I spoke now.
Ivan’s lips moved into a faint smile.
"My father has grown old. As with all emperors and kings, judgment dulls, and frailty sets in during their final years. Even a sovereign emperor, revered as possessing divine blood, is no exception. Meanwhile, I am just now reaching my prime. My mind is overflowing with countless plans, rising endlessly like waves. What I need is the authority and power to bring them into reality. Forget ten years—I can’t even afford to wait one."
Ivan extended his slender hand, grasping at empty space. His eyes gleamed brilliantly, as if they were drawing in the surrounding light. It was as though darkness had gathered around him, with only his pupils glowing like the sun and moon.
…Reckless. Reckless beyond belief. My own boldness felt trivial in comparison.
I didn't know what to say. If anyone other than a royal had uttered such words, immediate execution would have been too lenient. Not only their entire family but even those merely acquainted with them would have lost their heads.
'He intends to push his own father aside and take the throne himself.'
This ambitious boy had no intention of simply walking the path laid out before him.
I answered with silence. Any words of agreement would be dangerous.
"Luka, this isn't a test of your qualifications as an Overseer. I swear this with everything I have."
He was telling the truth. My instincts told me so. But my lips remained sealed.
Ivan sighed and stood up. Then, to my astonishment, he began walking up the wall until he was standing upside down on the ceiling. His bare feet clung effortlessly to the surface.
Hanging above me with his hair dangling downward, Ivan stopped and looked at me.
"Akies Domini, the Emperor’s Overseer… Let me tell you one of its qualifications. An Overseer must not be crushed by authority. Even if their opponent is the Emperor, they must be able to present a different perspective."
My eyes widened. Only then did I fully understand.
An Overseer needed the mindset of Akies Victima. They existed to assist in the Emperor’s reasoning and judgment. Even without direct orders, an Overseer had to identify what the Emperor had overlooked and compensate for it.
"In the human world we live in, there is no absolute truth. Throughout history, thesis, antithesis, and synthesis—conflict—have driven higher-level thinking and better judgment. But on the surface, the Emperor must be a divine figure. He cannot appear as someone capable of making mistakes."
Ivan, who had been walking on the ceiling, suddenly dropped to the floor, landing behind me. I didn’t turn around. If I looked at him now, I felt like I might kneel of my own accord and swear my loyalty from the depths of my heart.
There was something indescribable about him. Perhaps this was what people called an aura, a halo, or charisma.
"An Overseer trained in Akies Victima is supposed to erase their own existence and support the Emperor. But my father has grown weak, and Kinuan has crossed the line. The plan to kill Francec? That was Kinuan’s idea from the very beginning. That brain-dead wreck… was the one who proposed assassinating a royal."
I didn’t know what kind of expression Ivan was making. But I could vaguely feel his gaze burning into the back of my neck.
"Is the problem that they plan to kill His Highness Francec?"
I broke the silence, wondering if even this monster behind me felt some shred of familial attachment.
"No, the plan itself is excellent. But the fact that it came from Kinuan’s mouth, and that my father accepted it so readily—that’s the problem. That is not the proper relationship between an Emperor and his Overseer. This wasn’t the result of a clash of opinions; it was Kinuan deceiving my father into making a decision."
I was a fool for even momentarily expecting any sense of brotherly affection. Of course, that was never the case.
"I understand why you can’t say anything. You don’t need to respond. The relationship between an Emperor and an Overseer is one that continues without words. Listen, Luka. I need chaos. And I need to ruin my father and Kinuan’s plan."
Ivan had come to me just before Francec’s parade. From that point on, my mind naturally began tracing the chain of causality, determining my mission and my role.
"…When the time comes, fulfill your role. You belong to no one but me, my Overseer."
The door opened, and with it, Ivan’s presence disappeared.